Date (4)

"Aha, I've been caught."

As the cloth draped over her face slipped away, the imperial princess revealed herself. Golden hair reminiscent of the metal itself, and familiar golden irises.

The Imperial Princess, Aria von Shpenheim.

How could the princess of the Arieh Empire be participating in such a festival?

Come to think of it, the interior of the tarot stall had been suspiciously extravagant.

Now that I knew the woman's identity, the reason became clear. It was simply an interior design funded by excessive wealth.

The princess gave an awkward laugh, seemingly embarrassed at having her identity exposed. Abel crossed his arms and stared intently at her.

Avoiding his gaze with visible effort, she finally let out a long sigh. "Huuu..."

"How did you figure it out?"

"Frankly, you're the only one who would use tarot cards like these."

As he spoke, Abel flipped over one of the remaining cards from the pile on the table.

Every card he turned over was completely blank. I couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh at the sight.

Who would have thought the cards themselves were empty from the start?

It was absurd enough to make me question whether these could even be called tarot cards.

"Well, that's true."

The princess cleared her throat with an embarrassed "Ahem," then flicked her finger toward the cards spread across the table.

Tap!

With that crisp sound ringing in my ears, illustrations began appearing on the blank cards. The images changed instantaneously, without any detectable magical presence.

The wondrous sight made me momentarily lose myself.

To change cards like this without even using magic... When I looked up, I saw the princess smiling contentedly.

Apparently satisfied with my reaction, she kept making pleased little "Hmph" sounds through her nose.

"Impressive, isn't it?"

"Yes, certainly—"

"Nothing to be impressed about. It's merely sleight of hand."

Abel's dry interjection clearly displeased her. The princess shot him a sharp sidelong glare.

"Would you mind not spoiling the magic? I only want to see the audience's genuine reactions."

"As Her Highness wishes."

"Hmph."

She snorted at his sarcastic tone and gathered up the cards.

With a wave of magic, she collected them into one hand and began shuffling again.

"Well, as you just saw, that was just a prank. I do actually know how to read tarot properly."

The princess spread the thoroughly shuffled cards across the table in a neat line.

Her practiced hands placed each card at perfectly measured intervals—clearly not the work of an amateur.

Unlike before, the card backs now shimmered with colorful star patterns. Perhaps the designs only appeared when performing an actual reading.

Pointing at the cards with one hand, she asked:

"So, what would you like to know about first?"

"Hmm..."

I fell into brief contemplation at her question.

Wealth fortune hardly mattered to me as a noble to begin with. Especially now that I'm engaged to Abel.

'Though I have been struggling in various ways because of it...'

Who knows what the future holds, but at least money problems seem unlikely.

Similarly, I had no particular interest in health fortune. Health ultimately depends on how well I take care of myself.

Besides, I've been training diligently every morning lately, so there's no need to worry. Adel's body was inherently healthy to begin with.

That leaves...

"Let's do ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠love fortune."

"Oho. This should be fun."

The moment I said "love fortune," the princess's face lit up with a smile.

Beaming, she stole a glance at Abel standing beside her.

I expected some reaction, but his expression remained perfectly serene. Maybe he's the type who doesn't believe in tarot to begin with.

Then again, given Abel's personality—so focused on reason and logic—him believing in tarot would be stranger.

"Alright then, pick three cards."

Just like before, I selected three cards.

I handed them to the princess, who flipped them over and showed them to me.

The cards displayed: a sheet of paper bearing an official seal, two knights back-to-back looking in opposite directions, and a woman holding scales.

'...Are these really tarot cards?'

I'd seen plenty of tarot in my past life, but never designs like these.

Well, medieval tarot would naturally differ. Still, I didn't expect completely unfamiliar cards.

Strangely refreshing, in a way.

"Mmm, shall we begin the reading?"

"Yes."

Her voice brimming with excitement, the princess continued:

"These cards represent the past, present, and future respectively."

"The card representing the past is paper, the present is two knights back-to-back, and the future ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠is a scale, I see."

It seems the basic method of reading tarot is similar to modern times after all.

"'The past is this paper—a card related to contracts. I'm sure you two already know what this means, don't you?'"

Without realizing it, I rubbed the back of my right hand.

It was true—our relationship had indeed started with a contract. Though somehow, we had grown closer since then.

But the fact that it began as a contract marriage was undeniable.

That's why I hesitated. Because I worried that he might not feel the same way I did.

"'The present is two knights back-to-back... Hmm. So you've grown close enough to rely on each other, have you?'"

The princess smiled warmly as she looked at me. I returned an awkward smile. It was true—we had developed trust in each other.

We were far better off now than during the days when we'd been subtly at each other's throats. But I had no intention of stopping here.

Because what I wanted now was a relationship that went beyond this.

"'And lastly, this scale...'"

The princess paused briefly, her brow furrowing slightly. She tapped the card a few times before finally looking at me.

"'Someone else will come for you.'"

"'Someone else...?'"

When I repeated her words in confusion, she pursed her lips as if exasperated.

"'In matters of romance, who else could "someone else" ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠possibly refer to?'"

"'Ah...'"

Only then did I understand what she meant. So another man might come into the picture?

I had never even considered it—the idea of meeting someone other than Abel.

Frankly, I couldn't imagine any man being better than him in the first place.

And more than anything, now that I already had feelings for him, this so-called "fortune" wasn't exactly welcome.

"'You will weigh your choices on this scale and choose your person.'"

"'I see...'"

So that's what the scale symbolized. For some, this might be a desperately desired stroke of luck—but not for me.

The very idea of weighing my lover on a scale left a bitter taste in my mouth. The card's implications were unpleasant, to say the least.

Noticing my displeased expression, the princess chuckled softly and gathered the cards.

As she shuffled the deck again, she turned her head toward Abel.

"'Since we're at it, would you like a reading as well, Duke?'"

"'I'm not sure. I've never had much interest in such things.'"

His voice was indifferent. The princess studied him for a moment before continuing slowly.

"'But surely there's something you're curious about? The Magic King's Legacy, for instance...'"

"'...You knew about that?'"

"'Of course. How many years have I known you, Duke?'"

She grinned as she spoke. In contrast, his expression darkened.

I wasn't sure what exactly the Magic King's Legacy referred to, but judging by Abel's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠reaction, it must be something incredibly important.

Important enough to make his brow twitch slightly.

"'The Magic King's Legacy is not a single entity. Is that what you mean to say?'"

"'Yes. As expected, you catch on quickly, Duke.'"

"'And what is your price?'"

"'Simple. I'd like to do a reading for you.'"

At her words, his face twisted—not in displeasure, but in genuine confusion.

"'For something as trivial as that?'"

"'Trivial? Hardly. There's something I'd like to test for myself as well.'"

"'...Very well.'"

Abel nodded and approached me.

"'Excuse me for a moment, Adel.'"

Then he took a seat in the chair beside me. Watching this, the princess smirked and spread the shuffled cards across the table once more.

"'What would you like to know?'"

"'The same. Romance, if you would.'"

"'Understood. In that case...'"

She gestured toward the cards, signaling him to choose. Without hesitation, Abel drew three cards from the deck.

When the princess flipped them over, they were completely blank.

"...The backs of the cards were clearly glowing earlier?"

The next card was the same. And the one after that.

I frowned slightly. If she had wanted to read his fortune so badly, why resort to such a cheap trick?

What exactly was the princess thinking when she proposed this?

When I looked up, I saw her face had stiffened slightly.

"'...Just as I thought.'"

"'What do you mean?'"

At my question, she hesitated briefly before gathering the cards to shuffle them again.

"'Let's try once more. This time...'"

"'Let's try health instead.'"

Abel, too, seemed to have noticed something as he spoke. The princess nodded and reshuffled the deck before spreading the cards on the table again.

He picked three more and handed them to her.

One by one, she turned them over—and once again, blank cards appeared in succession.

"'Now I think I understand.'"

Staring intently at the empty cards, she let out a sigh and gathered them up.

When Abel met her gaze, she finally spoke, keeping her promise.

"'One of the Magic King's Legacies... takes the form of a human.'"